What in the world is this story about?
From there Elisha went up to Bethel. As he was walking along the road,
some boys came out of the town and jeered at him.
“Get out of here, baldy!” they said. “Get out of here, baldy!”
2 Kings 2:23
You’re probably wondering if I’m inserting this story as comic relief. Maybe you’re aware that I am “follicly challenged” and am warning you not to make fun of my gloriously balding head, just as Elisha also was in this story. However, the true meaning of these three verses is worth a deeper probe. First, here are the other two verses (24-25):
“He turned around, looked at them and called down a curse on them in the name of the Lord. Then two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys. And he went on to Mount Carmel and from there returned to Samaria.”
Wow, what a horrible story – or so it seems. Two bears hurt or killed 42 “boys”. Sounds a bit harsh for some playground name-calling, doesn’t it? Let’s start with a little background. Earlier in this chapter, Elijah is taken up into heaven, and Elisha has succeeded him in prophetic ministry. Elisha is now on his way to Bethel, a place full of idolatry and wickedness.
The NIV and other translations do a disservice by calling this gathering “boys”. In actuality, they were older youths – and probably 20 years old or older. This same Hebrew expression is used to describe young officers in Israel’s army in 1 Kings 20:14. This was no school yard gathering. When it says that 42 of them are mauled, there were likely many more in the group. This was probably a mob-like gathering of young men looking to stop Elisha from coming against Bethel. When they yelled, “Get out of here, baldy!” it seemed they were referencing Elijah’s heaven-going and wanting Elijah to do the same, i.e., go away for good.
Elisha then “called down a curse on them in the name of the Lord”. This was not swearing, but rather turning the matter over to God. See Leviticus 26:21-22 for a similar curse. See also 2 Kings 17:24-25 for another instance where God brought judgment by using animals.
God dealt with the mob severely through a bear attack. It was a sign not to speak against one of His prophets, as well as a warning to those in the Bethel area to turn from their wicked ways. It legitimized Elisha’s succession to Elijah. This story is a great example of why further research (digging deeper) is often needed to truly understand God’s Word.
May Jesus do for us what He did for the disciples:
Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.
Luke 24:25
